Getting on with things

I'm still rather down about M. and cleaning up all her stuff, but lots of good things have also happened recently. I'm just back from a wonderful concert with the Sydney Symphony conducted by Vladimir Ashkenazy (THE Vladimir Ashkenazy!) performing Rachmaninov's Vocalise, the 3rd pieno concerto (Garrick Ohlsson on piano who also played a Rachmaninov prelude as an encore) and the symphonic dances. I went with Nicole who kindly drove me back home. She has convinced me to try and learn a piano piece properly - i.e. take months over the piece and slowly work up from one hand at a time etc. I've never learnt a piece like this before - any ideas? I'm torn between a Schubert sonata and some Liszt.

Other good things: tomorrow Kate and I are going out to look for a 'cello bow. I'm going to buy a bow to celebrate getting a PERMANENT RESEARCH POSITION at the ATNF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've just got the documents: I haven't read them in detail, but am being offered an indefinite appointment as follows:

Title: Research Scientist
From: 01 Jan 08
Duration: Indefinite
CSIRO level: --- about 4 steps higher than I'm currently at!!!

Signed by the ATNF director!!!!

This is all conditional on me being granted a permanent residence VISA in Australia. I really hope that all the crazy stuff that has happened with Maryam doesn't cause a problem, but I don't see why it should.

Work is going very well. I've almost finished my tempo2 paper III and Bill and I are working on another paper to study error analysis in pulsar timing. I also have to go down to Canberra in mid-December to talk to some important politicians about our project to make the Parkes telescope operable by high school students.

Lots to do ... (including learning some more Italiano)